Cultural Sri Lanka

Description

Now that peace has been restored to the beautiful island of Sri Lanka there has never been a better time to visit. And on this five day tour you will see the highlights of the island which was formerly known as Ceylon. You will visit ancient temples and discover the history. Tour the royal city of Kandy and see the stunning botanical gardens and climb up to the amazing rock fortress of Sigiriya, known as the Lion Rock, which has great views over the surrounding countryside.

Day 1
Habarana

After your flight you will be transferred direct to Habarana an overnight stay. Rest of day is at leisure. HABARANA - the central point of Sri Lanka’s cultural
triangle and the most convenient base for excursions to the
Ancient historical cities – Anuradhapura 60 minutes,
Polonnaruwa 45 minutes, Sigiriya/Dambulla 30 minutes,
Ritigala 10 minutes and Minneriya National Park (site of the
renowned “Gathering” of over 300 Elephant between July and
September) 15 minutes. Though in the “Dry Zone” of the
country, thanks to the genius of ancient kings the Sri Lankan
“dry zone” is anything but dry, with hundreds of lakes and
reservoirs connected by an elaborate network of canals
making up a fascinating irrigation system which also provides
some of the most breathtakingly beautiful scenery and fertile
habitat for Sri Lanka’s incredible bio-diversity. This
contributes to a large range of activity in the area – village
and forest walks, bird and wildlife watching, Elephant Back
Safari, cycling, trekking and boating. Habarana is the location
of two of the country’s best hotels - The Cinnamon Lodge and
The Chaaya Village, idyllically located by a peaceful lake and
in extensive landscaped gardens which retain most of the
original forest trees.

Day 2
Habarana

After breakfast your tour begins in earnest with a visit to to Sigiriya where King Kashyapa built his fortified palace on top of a huge rocky outcrop in the 5th century. On the way up see rock paintings of beautiful women considered as being part of the world's art treasure. In the afternoon visit Polonnaruwa, the capital of the island from the 11th to the 13th century. See incredible Buddhist art at the Tivanka Image House.

Day 3
Kandy

Today you will visit Kandy stopping at the fascinating Dambulla Cave Temples on route. In Kandy, the last capital of the Sinhalese kings, you will see the sacred Tooth Relic of the Buddha at Dalada Maligawa, venue of one of the most colourful pageants in all Asia, and later you will be taken to the Royal Botanical Gardens.

Day 4
Colombo

This morning you will visit the world famous Elephant Orphanage at Pinnawela. The orphanage is home to young elephants who have been displaced or lost from their natural habitat. Here you can bottle feed these magnificent creatures and watch them have a bath in the nearby river. Continue on to the capital city of Colombo for a city tour.

Day 5
Depart Colombo

Colombo has long been regarded as the traditional gateway to the Orient and today is a fascinating city with a happy blend of East and West. You will have had time to visit the local bazaars the previous evening and today there may be time for some last minute shopping or sightseeing before being transferred to the airport for your onward journey or flight home.

Tour details 5 days

Standard fr £585pp

Valid between: 01/05/2018 - 14/07/2018

Tour Highlights

Habarana

Kandy

Colombo

Included:

4 nights accommodation

3 nights on Half Board, 1 night on BB

Transport in an Air conditioned vehicle

Arrival and departure airport transfers

Services of an English speaking driver / guide

Entrance Fees

Not included:

Arrival and departure transfers to beach hotels

TRUSTED REVIEWS See what 312 customers thought of Colombo

Very good service.

Deborah Clark| Posted on 20 Sep Flew to Colombo

Thank you for booking my seats in advance and for sorting the car transfer to Heathrow

Emily Rose| Posted on 14 Sep Flew to Colombo

Very good customer service and after sales service. I highly recommend it.

Mohammed Nawaz| Posted on 03 Sep Flew to Colombo

Excellent service from DialAFlight

Sunita Mistry| Posted on 29 Aug Flew to Colombo

I would like to thank Charlotte for all her work she put into this trip. Even though we changed our minds a few times nothing was too much.

Deborah Lawless| Posted on 26 Aug Flew to Colombo

Absolutely brilliant - thanks again to Sadie and her team. We will be back again

Michael Murrie| Posted on 20 Aug Flew to Colombo

I will use DialAFlight again. Never had a bad phone call - always so helpful and knowledgeable.

Helen Burns| Posted on 13 Aug Flew to Colombo

Some of the trip could have been improved in terms of stays at each hotel

Barry Shaw| Posted on 08 Aug Flew to Colombo

Emirates from Birmingham to Sri Lanka via Dubai - perfect journey as arranged by Les and his team although travelling such a route in late July does present challenges with school holiday family queues and congestion.

Malcolm Wray| Posted on 07 Aug Flew to Colombo

Travel manager did a really great job

David Partridge| Posted on 20 Jul Flew to Colombo

Proper personal service from people who really want to make sure you have s great flight. Highly recommended!

David Caderamanpulle| Posted on 19 Jul Flew to Colombo

Always good service and feels good to know there is a human being to speak to if things go wrong

Gunilla Kirchner| Posted on 18 Jul Flew to Colombo

Always speak to Dexter who has been good with our continuous questions.

Lorraine Wheatley| Posted on 29 Jun Flew to Colombo

Excellent service, again. Recommend to anyone and everyone.

Andrew George perutz| Posted on 03 Jun Flew to Colombo

Great service - will continue to use you

Annette Tromans| Posted on 11 May Flew to Colombo

As usual, excellent service and support from the team at DialAFlight

Susan Davies| Posted on 07 May Flew to Colombo

Sri Lankan Airlines were excellent

Glenda Taylor| Posted on 21 Apr Flew to Colombo

An amazing place and thanks to the team for rearranging things at last moment

Glyn Towlerton| Posted on 19 Apr Flew to Colombo

Thank you for a well organised trip, and to Walkers tours. Kingsley our driver was exceptional and spoilt us, he filled us with so much knowledge and couldn't have been more helpful.

Nicola Bailey| Posted on 16 Apr Flew to Colombo

Great communication.

Lisa Curley| Posted on 15 Apr Flew to Colombo

We love Alfie - brilliant help to us

Timothy Maskell| Posted on 15 Apr Flew to Colombo

Great holiday. All arrangements ran smoothly with no problems.

Helen Kane| Posted on 05 Apr Flew to Colombo

Excellent job - will call again

Deirdre Beresford| Posted on 02 Apr Flew to Colombo

Everything excellent as usual. Had a good trip - busy but enjoyable. Thanks again for all your help.

Colin Ward| Posted on 30 Mar Flew to Colombo

Faultless organisation, as always. Would unhesitatingly recommend the company.

Michael Frost| Posted on 29 Mar Flew to Colombo

Very helpful and efficient service - thanks again

Mark Wilkinson| Posted on 28 Mar Flew to Colombo

Des made our flight and travel plans go smoothly. Absolutely effortless. Kept us up to date throughout. Can't speak highly enough about him and his team.

Graham Kyzer| Posted on 19 Mar Flew to Colombo

Fantastic service as always and absolutely no hesitation in recommending this company.